Cartman

Lazy me...who is in power in Sweden right now? I thought the right enjoyed only a few years in gov't. Could be mistaken.

BTW...never forget when Zalm literally ran away from the press up some stairs when presented with uncomfortable questions (corruption charges). He profoundly altered my perception of politicians and authority.

Economists are not a homogenous group. There are more interesting studies in econ. dealing with life happiness for example.

I admit that I know little about environmental issues. I am somewhat socially conservative though and believe that we should all drive smaller cars (less often), use less water, recycle etc. etc. Seems like Cdns are really lazy when it comes to these kind of things that can only be helpful to our environment. How do you respond to the fish crises on both coasts (salmon and cod), BSE, beluga whale etc. etc? I actually accept your point that not all corporations are alike, but I do believe that some are pretty archaic in terms of how they treat the environment. I have witnessed first hand the innappripriate dumping of chemicals into the ground (no, I didn't do it).

Better state funding should be provided for far fewer students who possess the ability to perform well. Why should we heavily subsidize students who lack such abilities? For some, alternative skills and institutions should be considered. University is not for everyone. I do not think that allowing wealthy students who lack the ability to properly do the work is helpful. It is also not fair for them to subsidize others. By granting degrees too easily, universities have made them less valuable and that is very unfortunate. A BA/BSc should mean something. I am happy that universities are reviewing how profs. (currently and historically) grade their students . Those who are becoming too lenient are increasingly being questioned about their evaluation methods. It is about time.

I am surprised that he could "lunge" at them in a menacing way. 86 year old men are known, however, to cluster in gangs with colours in their hood holding food in their hands. Of all the things to choose from, why would he order meatloaf from a restaurant?

I am belabouring this issue and promise to stop after this post. IMO, Marx's call for revolution led to some positive changes as well (redistribution/welfare states).

Hugo I agree that making causal statements about changes to our environment is difficult at best, but what is your solution? Should we just let the market go its own and hope for the best? I am also skeptical of claims made, but I would rather err on the side of caution. I remember when tobacco companies used to say that statistical significance was not the exact same thing as proof. They used to say (and technically they were right) that it could not be "proven" that smoking kills because not everyone who smoked died from it.

I had to post this b/c it made me so mad to see this guy win the lottery. On the other hand, I suppose that he might find life more difficult now in jail. Do you think that he should be allowed to collect the money or should the state take away this existing right? I think that the victims should get a big slice.

Hugo, turn to page 737 of your text The Marx-Engels Reader, 2nd Ed., edited by Robert C. Tucker, W. W. Norton & Company, 1978. Our word family is derived from the Roman term "familia" which "signifies the totality of slaves belonging to one individual". Marx was not justifying such enslavement, he was reacting against it by referring to it as such. That is also why he and Engels referred to "the world- historic defeat of the female sex (p.736). I would suggest you re-read this as your interpretation is kinda off. Even though this was specifically written by Engels, it was taken from Marx's own writings. Marx's ideas themselves also changed significantly over time. I will have to refer to his Manuscripts 'cuz that was a long time ago (when I first read it). Did you know Marx was Jewish and his father changed their family name to avoid racism? I will give you this one though. He equated Jews with the others. Even to add to your argument, I will admit that Marx was also very critical of the extreme poor (lumpenproletariat) for their lack of revolutionary zeal. As for the others, he was reacting against the terrible abuse of power and exploitation that existed during this time. Remember, children were working long hours in mines, factories and mills for petty rewards. Government intervention did not protect them until the late 1800's. How can one not find this deplorable? Germans in general had negative sentiments against these groups. "There is a saying that they know the price of everything and know the value of nothing". Finally, there is a big difference b/w Marx and the few remaining contemporary neo-Marxists. I think you will grant me that. I do not know of any NDPers that take cues from Marx. I suspect most have never read him. I think you will also realize that although often thought to first use the concept, Marx was not the person to first coin the term "socialism". He had a very different idea of what that meant than most others. Sorry for the long post

No, I am saying that simply having the $$ but not the ability pulls everyone down. I do think too many teens believe that university is the only option when it is not. Many kids without the ability drop out after spending $$. As well, these students inevitably pull down standards thereby making the degrees almost worthless. They also find out that they need much higher grades to get into the MA programs. University attendance should be based on ability rather than $$. IMO, it is the other way around and is messing up the system for everyone.

You should actually read Marx and Engels rather than the Coles notes version. Ever read "The Origins of the Family, Private Property, and the State"? Yeah, this is not anti-women. How do you get that? Oh, and I am sure that you have actually read Das Kapital in full...yeah, not so much...Because Marx was often sarcastic, he should be read carefully. You should also realize that the advice offered by the Oracle on the Matrix should be subjectively interpreted.

I gotta reassert a point I made earlier. Too many people are in university because they can afford it, not because they have the requisite abilities. Universities more than readily accept students even if they do not have the necessary skills because they subsidize the schools. At the UofT, some intro classes have 1500 students. Profs rarely deal with students b/c they leave them to the TA's. Some of these classes have 8 TA's!! Think about how much $$ is made here!! Unfortunately, university acceptance is not based so much upon merit but rather $$ until graduate school. Anyone can now get into university and a BA, BSc mean nothing today sorry to tell you. I actually agree with Kimmy (this rarely happens Kimmy...sorry ) that university is not for everyone. Trades offer much for many. Today though, a lot of kids are getting screwed b/c they think that university is the right thing to do.

Whatever. Not all unions have the same demands nor do they obtain the same contracts. Teamsters are not the same as the Steelworkers or the CAW. In some sectors of the economy, I think unions are not very helpful, but in others I believe they are essential (primary production). Hjalmar, I assume that you would not work for minumum wage, so why should others? Really, why? Do you possess some mystical skill known only to magicians from the Lord of the Rings that nobody else can muster? Tell me, what is your secret? Or are you going to tell me some right-wing fairy tale about how one can prosper and send their kids to school on 20 cents an hour? :angry: This is hypocrisy pure and simple. Tell me, why is it that the third world is not booming? If labour demands sent businesses away, then why do they still exist here? Maybe because worker demands for education and health care have actually contributed to economic growth!

I am not so sure why this should be dropped. Do they not both selectively choose what to report? Apparently, for each edition of The National, up to 1 million words and 40 hours of videotape are collected and must be reduced to about 20 minutes of air time. How do they decide and who decides what should be considered "news" and what is not? Do they not both report what is in their own self-interest? If they both aim to convince, then this is propaganda.

After the BSE program, I can't blame you. I like the general idea too, but I wonder if this might be an opportunity for drug companies to benefit too much (i.e. people perceive it as free so doctors freely prescribe and people readily accept prescriptions)? Catastrophic drug care is a good idea though and I hope Martin moves quickly on this one. I once had an employee whose wife had a rare disease. Her meds cost $20,000/month!!!! Unbelievable I know.

I am sure everyone has read this somewhere, but just in case. http://www.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/europe/08/12...ist.lottery.ap/

The difference Black Dog, is that our stereotypes about easterners are right while the reverse is not true. Ha! Many Albertans are "Ontario transplants".

August Posted on Aug 15 2004, 04:44 AM http://www.cnn.com/2004/US/01/01/city.murders.ap/ http://canadaonline.about.com/library/week...y/aa072802a.htm August, fear and risk are not necessarily the same thing. You might be afraid of walking through a cemetary in the dark, but that does not mean the walking dead are actually going to get you (just socialists).

But don't forget, they also had the option of listening to that unbiased "Voice of America" too.

The contrast b/w Alberta and BC is incredible. Personally, I think that we should just abolish elections in Alberta. Why bother? Rarely does anything change anyways. We could save a lot of tax money and make the PC's pay for elections (from within the Party).

Now I would have thought that former communist BC would have had a higher per capita debt. I just thought that someone should post a reply to this.

I will be content as a member of a "Professional Faculty Organization" (fancy phrase for a union) where there is such a thing as work for life with benefits etc. It is called tenure and it is locked in until I am old and grey. Honestly, you didn't actually swallow that stuff about the end of work did you? MS quickly touched on it, but do you really believe that blue collar work will perish? I think that this was a utopian dream. Maybe we should all just agree to disagree. Those on the left can fight and cooperate for their fair share of the pie and end capitalism as we know it, while those on the right can scrap it out to work for minimum wage without the aid of the welfare state, secure in the knowledge that they are contributing to the health of the Canadian economy.

I would levy that criticism, unfortunately, at many professors. I hate to admit it though. In terms of user fees, the only way I would consider them is if they were done on a sliding scale. That is, the "Bill Gates" of the world should not pay what the poor pay. A trivial % of your monthly or annual income. Somehow, I think that if this were done, the Conservatives would be whining about user fees because everyone including the wealthy would be equally affected. I do not accept the notion that greater equality = poverty for all.

If low wages alone attracted corporations and led to economic growth, then would not countries like India etc. be more developed than Canada (considering they were both controlled by Britain)? It seems to me that working class gains (including the ability to obtain affordable educations, gov't paid health care etc) contribute to growth. I don't think workers should be considered liabilities. I suspect that when US companies do not have to pay for health care costs (insurance) directly (and our system is more efficient than is the US health care system), they find Canada more attractive. I think that those advocating low wages are hypocritical. Who here wants to or is willing to work for third world wages? If not, why advocate that for others?